PARISHIONERS and dignitaries gathered at the war memorial in Bere Ferrers last Thursday to honour ten New Zealand soldiers who lost their lives in a tragedy at the village station 92 years ago.

On September 24, 1917, soldiers of the 28th Reinforcements had arrived in Plymouth, having left New Zealand in July. They were on their way by train to Salisbury Plain when the accident happened.

The first scheduled stop was due to be Exeter where all the soldiers were expecting to receive refreshments — but the train made an unscheduled stop at the Bere Ferrers Station.

The men, not knowing where they were, assumed they had arrived at Exeter and began leaving the train — in New Zealand they were used to jumping down onto the track, but this was to lead to the death of ten men who were hit by the Waterloo Express coming the other way. Seven were killed instantly and three others were badly injured, they later died in hospital.

The short ceremony at Bere Ferrers war memorial saw wreaths laid at the foot of the memorial at precisely 3.34pm, the time when the accident happened.

The ceremony was the result of a request from the New Zealand Army Museum in Waiouru to identify New Zealand servicemen buried in Devon and Cornwall.

Brian Cumming, county chairman for the Royal British Legion, learned about the accident during research.

To mark the anniversary, the people of Bere Ferrers were joined by members of the Royal British Legion, Lt Ben Till of the Royal New Zealand Navy and his family, lay reader Sheila Gay, and local dignitaries.

Lt Till, who is currently based at Yeovilton, said at the ceremony: 'I would like to thank you on behalf of the New Zealand defence. It's an honour for me to come here.

'These soldiers were on their way to do their jobs for the Commonwealth and the King — their sacrifice is still in the forefront of our minds.'

Sheila Gay, lay reader at St Andrew's Church, Bere Ferrers, said: 'We meet here today to honour those young men who sacrificed the comfort and safety of their homes so far away to fight for the peace of the world — and ended their earthly lives in our community.

As their names are written in God's book of life, so they are also inscribed in our parish church where their courage and resolve will be commemorated for ever.'